Mailing-envelop.



No. 808,546. PATENTED DEC. 26, 1905.

' B. U KIMBARK.

' MAILING BNVELOP.

APPLICATION FILED DE(1.28. 1904.

Warren STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAILING-ENVELOP- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 26, 1905.

Application filed December 28, 1904- Serial No. 238,681.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EUGENE U. KIMBARK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mailing-Envelops, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in mailing-envelope and has for its object to provide an improved construction in devices of this character by which, although unprovided with any fastening device other than certain flaps and folds of the paper itself, the envelop is made capable of being securely closed in such manner as to permit of its being readily opened for inspection of its contents without tearing or serious distortion and without in any way affecting the ossibility of subsequent reclosing the enve op as before after the inspection is completed.

The invention consists of the matters hereinafter set forth, and particularly pointed out in the appended claim, and will be fully understood from the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a mailingenvelop constructed in accordance with my invention, showing the same in the finished but unfastened condition in which it is delivered to users. Figs. 2, 3, and 4 are perspective details illustrating the manner in which the user will fold the envelop to close it, Fig. 2 illustrating the first fold, Fig. 3 the second, and Fig. 4 the folding in of the ends, Which are sealed to the body of the envelop to complete the closure. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail showing the relative positions occupied by the flaps when the envelop is closed. Fig. 6 is a similar detail showing the relative positions occupied by the flaps when the envelop is opened for inspection after having been closed.

In said drawings, 1 designates the body of the envelop, which may be made up in any desirable manner, such as to leave its front and back sides projecting at the top of the envelop in the shape of flaps 2 and 3. These flaps are left unsecured along their side and end edges, and one of the fiapsthat designated 3 in this instanceis preferably made slightly narrower than the other flap 2. The latter or wide flap 2 is furthermore formed at its lateral edges and some distance below its end with projecting ears 4, that are gummed on their faces or on those faces remote from the flap 3. Such being its construction, the envelop is designed to be normally closed by foldlng both flaps 2 and 3 over twice, the first fold (illustrated in Fig.

2) taking place along a line 5, (indicated in Fig. 1) as substantially coincident with the up er corners of the ears 4 and the second fold (illustrated in Fig. 3) taking place along a line 6(indicated in Fig. 1) as substantially coincident with the lower corners of the ears 4, this second line of fold 6 being, in fact, the top of the envelop when finally closed. The folding of the fiap the second time,as shown in Fig. 3, turns down the ears 4 and reverses the direction in which they face, so as to bring their gummed sides toward thebody of the envelop, thus enabling them to be moistened and pasted to the back of the envelop when bent around the latter, as shown in Fig. 4. This pasting of the ears to the envelop completes the closure and normally holds the two flaps 2 and 3 doubled in after the manner better shown in Figs. 3 and 5, the flap 2 being permanently fastened in this position by means of its ears 4 and the flap 3 being held inclosed within the downwardly-opening pocket 7 formed by the permanent folding of the flap 2, Fig. 6. Obviously, however, the flap 3 is not secured except by being turned up into this downwardly-opening pocket, and it is i only necessary in order to open the envelop for inspection to withdraw the end of the flap 3 from this pocket, an operation which is facilitated by the relativelynarrowwidth ofthis fiap above referred to. When thus opened for inspection after being once closed, the envelop will appear in section as shown in Fig.

6, the flap 3 being extended in its original position, while the flap 2 remains permanently folded over in the position in which it has been fastened by the gumming of the ears 4 to the back of the envelop. After having been inspected the envelop may be closed again by simply doubling over the flap 3 and tucking its end up once more into the downwardly-extending pocket 7, into which it was originally folded.

It will be observed that a feature of importance lies in making the two flaps of substantially the same length and sufficiently long to fold over twice in closing the envelop, this double fold when. flattened and creased and finally secured by the pasting of the tabs to the back of the envelop, forming a locked .closure which will be practically proof against accidental opening during transmission 1n the mails even when the envelop is ICC ties of the flaps by taking the natural stiff-' ness out of the paper by crinkling it, the operator being required to simply make two transverse folds of the flap extensions, crease the folds, and paste the tabs, the tabs holding the creased folds closely to the body of the envelop and preventing their accidental separation. A further point of importance lies in the fact that when the flaps are given the double fold described the tabs will be reversed and be in position to be folded around the upper extremities of the side edges of the envelop, and thus materially strengthen the envelop where reinforcement is most needed.

I claim as my invention A- merchandise-mailing envelop, having a body portion whose front and back faces are extended upwardly to form two free flaps, one of these flaps being provided with tabs projecting laterally from its opposite side edges at points adjacent to the upper corners of the envelop and gummed on their faces remote from the opposite flap, whereby when said flaps are together folded over on two fold-lines, one above and the other .below said tabs, the tabs will be reversed and may be folded around the upper corners of the envelop and pasted to the body thereof.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affiX my signature, in presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 25th 4 day of November, A. D. 1904.

EUGENE U. KIMBARK.

Witnesses:

HENRY. W. CARTER, K. A. COSTELLO. 

